St. Tammany has a new festival, honoring an old favorite. Carnival rides will begin whirling in Lacombe on the night of June 28, and the St. Tammany Crab Festival will be in full swing June 29-30, offering fun for the whole family and a tribute to the beloved blue crab of Lake Pontchartrain.

A good haul, at sunrise in Lacombe.David Grunfeld, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune archive

Delwin
Jones, co-owner of the festival, said he and the other current owners of the festival,
Kenny Jones, Michael Howard, and Kevin Collins, decided to fund this
festival when they heard that the nearly four decades-old Lacombe Crab Festival had been cancelled.

"We
did it for the general public. When I heard about them not being able to do it,
we raised money and have been dealing with the legalization and organization of
it since," Jones said. "It would have been the first year since 1976 that they
wouldn't have a crab festival so it was very important we do this."

Jones
said their goal is simple: "To
provide the best entertainment we can give for the north shore, and for local businesses
to be involved in the festival with the amount of time we've been given to plan
the festival."

Jones
said the owners have sought out local restaurants and nonprofits so the nonprofits
could raise money for their causes.

Carnival rides will be available starting on June 28 at 4
p.m. for a special price that hasn't yet been determined. There also will be a gate fee that night, though that fee also has yet to be determined, Jones said.

The festival will be open June 29-30 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at John Davis Park in Lacombe, La at 61096 St. Mary St.
70445 in Lacombe. The admission fee is $10 for adults, and free for children 13 and younger.

Entertainment will be provided as follows:

June 29: John Anderson Big Snuggles will play from noon until 2 p.m., Lil Koray Broussard will play from 2:30 p.m. until 4:30 p.m., Geno Delafose will play from 5 p.m. until 6:30 p.m., and
Category 6 will be playing from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the festival.

The nonprofit Cultural Heritage Village will be set up in the Lacombe Community Center, starting at 4 p.m. on June 28. There will be no charge to view the exhibits Jan. 28, and no charge beyond the cost of the festival gate fee to view the exhibit June 29-30. According to Cultural Heritage Village organizer Tom Aicklen, the goal of the project is to promote Lacombe's
environmental, historical, and cultural heritage through displays, demonstrations, entertainment and activities by local nonprofits, traditional
artists, authentic crafters, families, and businesses.
Vendors are still being recruited for the Village, and may obtain information on participating by contacting Aicklen
at 985.882.7218 or indianajonest@aol.com.

Jones
said he hopes this is the first of many St. Tammany Crab Festivals. "We
want to let everybody know who may have been confused that the crab fest is here to stay and we're going to bring the best entertainment, to get better, and that's our mission," Jones said.